Parliament yesterday degenerated into a house of chaos as legislators from the government and opposition benches differed on the assessment of President Lazarus Chakwera’s State of the Nation Address (Sona) delivered on Friday.
In the course of the chaos, Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament Aisha Mambo Adams invoked Standing Order 105 to suspend Salima South legislator Christopher Manja (Malawi Congress Party-MCP) for four days for defying her order.
In the heat of the moment, Manja was seen taking off his jacket in apparent preparation for a physical confrontation to the chagrin of Adams who ordered him to leave the House.
However, Manja refused to comply, prompting the Second Deputy Speaker to temporarily suspended proceedings.
And when Parliament reconvened, Adams extended Manja’s suspension from three to four days.
Further, she also suspended Salima Central MP Gerald Phiri (MCP), Salima South East MP Mike Mwawi (MCP) and Zomba Changalume MP Bizwick Million (independent) for two days each for inciting Manja to defy the Speaker’s ruling.
The commotion escalated when Leader of the House Richard Chimwendo Banda warned that it would be tantamount to crossing the “red line” if Blantyre City South East MP Sameer Suleman (Democratic Progressive Party-DPP) did not retract his remarks that the President’s Sona should be removed from the Hansard, the official record of parliamentary proceedings, for containing inaccuracies.
He said: “If you want to cross the red line, we will cross it too. Try it and you will see what happens. If you want to play that game, we will play it as well. Muuzane komwe mukumakambiranako [tell each other in your caucuses that we won’t take it lying down].”
At this point, a visibly agitated Thyolo Central MP Ben Phiri (DPP) took to the floor and said Chimwendo Banda, who is also Minister of Local Government, Unity and Culture, had no right to threaten fellow legislators.
In the ensuing pandemonium, several MPs from both sides of the House rushed to the centre of the chamber, challenging one another to “cross the red line”. It was at this juncture that Manja took off his jacket, readying himself for a potential bout.
In an interview after adjournment, Chimwendo Banda dismissed claims that he had threatened opposition MPs.
He said: “It wasn’t a threat. We were merely saying that if they come before the House and accuse the President of not responding, we will step in and defend our President and his government.”
Chimwendo Banda also claimed that the opposition was out to discredit Chakwera’s achievements because this is an election year and they want to gain votes in the September 16 General Election.
But Leader of the Opposition in Parliament George Chaponda countered that Chimwendo Banda had no right to boast about development projects in councils as they were funded by taxpayers’ money.
“The developments in the councils are approved by Parliament and implemented using public funds. The government should not use them to silence or threaten the opposition when we raise legitimate concerns,” he said.
Reacting to the developments, political analyst Chimwemwe Tsitsi described the fracas as a common occurrence ahead of elections, noting that parties use such moments to bolster their image and appeal to the public.
Parliament Legislators have gathered in the capital Lilongwe for the First Meeting of the 51st Session, which will focus on the 2025-26 National Budget set to be tabled next Friday.
